The goal of this project is to clarify the molecular mechanisms that underlie the process of meiosis in mammalian systems. The information derived from such a study is directly applicable to the human reproduction process, particularly as it relates to male fertility. In this particular study, the aim is to discover the role that a distinctive group of sequences ("zygDNA") plays in chromosome behavior during meiosis. The role is probably a combination of structure and function. The structural aspect concerns the behavior of zygDNA in aligning chromosomes for meiotic pairing. The functional aspect concerns the transcription of some of the zygDNA sequences. Experiments are directed at demonstrating the precise chromosomal location of zygDNA and at the identity of the products of zygRNA translation. Alongside these experiments, the recently discovered system for effecting meiotic recombination will be further analyzed and the protein purified.